Sing You Home and other novels by Jodi Picoult, a sort-of book review and a little opinion about research.

On the release of her novel, Change of Heart, Jodi Picoult visited Australia to promote her book. She told the rapt audience at Sails Restaurant at Noosa Heads, that when she wrote she had a Team Jodi. This team consisted of a group of researchers and professionals who she was able to call on whilst writing her latest book. (Sure beats just having Google!) To write Change of Heart (where she examines the issue of heart transplants amidst all sorts of legal ramifications) she was able to jump on a plane across America and visit death row. Cool. (Wish I could jump on a plane and research the cranberry harvest on Nantucket Island!) One can only imagine the amount of research she now puts in for her latest novels - she churns out one every 9 months!

Her latest novel, Sing You Home, is full of evidence of an army of researchers. Following the now accepted Picoult formula of early novel - set up, last part of novel - court scene, Jodi has used a stunning array of facts, stats and stories to fully examine the issue - should gay married couples be able to adopt children?

At the author talk in 2008, Picoult was asked how she chose the issue for her next novel. She replied that she was a voracious reader of newspapers to keep abreast of the current hot topics. During her sleeping hours the idea for her new novel would form in her mind, and away she would go on a frenzy of research and writing.

Jodi Picoult doesn't need my review to sell her books (you can find over 2,000 reviews of Sing You Home on the net), but something's been bugging me:

How does an author know when enough is enough? I'm a great Picoult fan, but even I am getting a bit jaded with her 'winning' formula - hot topics, loads of research, courtroom scenes with more twists and turns than a medieval maze resulting in reader fatigue with all the stats, spats and what's zats??

As much as I enjoyed Sing You Home (I loved learning about what a music therapist actually does!) and I find her multiple POV style easy to follow,  I got a bad case of legal fatigue during the last half of the book. Thorough research is necessary, but IMHO you don't have to show everything you learnt about a topic by being just so clever. Your reader knows if you know what you're talking about.

I've got to the stage where I know where's she's going and the last page reveal is, well, sure Jodi, you didn't fool me - I knew this is where you were taking me half a book ago, ha ha, whereas in Salem Falls you stunned me speechless with the reveal. I'm still reeling over that one! But I must say the pages and pages of discussion on the DNA chain complete with diagrams had my eyes rolling back in my head.

Here's happy little me chatting with Jodi Picoult after an awesome lunch
 and author talk at Noosa Heads.

From goodreads:

Sing You Home

by Jodi Picoult

 3.71  ·   rating details  ·  7,305 ratings  ·  2,005 reviews

One miscarriage too many spelled the end of Max and Zoe Baxter's marriage. Though the former couple went quite separate ways, their fates remained entangled: After veering into alcoholism, Max is saved in multiple senses by his fundamentalist conversion; Zoe, for her part, finds healing relief in music therapy and the friendship, then romantic love with Vanessa, her counselor. After Zoe and Vanessa, now married, decide to have a baby, they realize that they must join battle with Max, who objects on both religious and financial grounds. Like her House Rules and several other previous Jodi Picoult novels, Sing You Home grapples with hot button issues. The novel also includes a CD of songs, each matched with a chapter in the book. Perfect for book clubs.

• What do you think about author research?
• Do you have to show all you know? 
• Do you agree/disagree with me that sometimes authors go overboard trying to show the reader how much they've learnt?